Apple Patents Illustrate Face ID Enhancements

Newly published patent applications from Apple suggest that the company is still working on improvements to the renowned 3D facial recognition system used to authenticate users on its latest iPhones.

As Patently Apple reports, one of the patents concerns the use of ‘subepidermal imaging’ to assess features such as blood vessels to establish an even more thorough biometric profile of a user. The subepidermal imaging could be facilitated through the use of near-infrared illumination or other long-wavelength imaging methods.

Another patent published by the US Patent and Trademark Office details the use of heat mapping to determine whether a user’s face is partially obscured, for example by a scarf.

While only the first patent is specifically concerned with preventing potential spoofing or false acceptances, both appear to be aimed at improving the functionality and effectiveness of the Face ID system. And given that both were filed in early 2018, after the initial debut of Face ID in the iPhone X, it seems fair to conclude that Apple isn’t content to rest on its laurels with respect to its Face ID system, but rather that its engineers continue to investigate potential improvements.